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Drum-making

I hollow out maple log-sections with a chisel , and the skin from a cow bison is my preference for drum-heads . The biggest drum I made has been~ 32'' wide , 20'' deep . I sold it , and the man said it would become a Buddhist temple drum high on a mountain .

"God," asked Adam, "why did you make Eve so beautiful?"
And He replied, "So that you could love her."
"But God," asked Adam, "why did you make her so stupid?"
And He replied, "So that she could love you."

Well , ok today I made a pix of a drum in a Korean-style Opera . And there's a quartet of flutes I have made , and a bird puppet , and also a washtub cello . I don't believe the woman singing has realized the bird of wonder has just arrived . I am sitting with the flutists . There is a traditional painted screen on set .

I mean, show us the instruments you made so we can see the workmanship.

"God," asked Adam, "why did you make Eve so beautiful?"
And He replied, "So that you could love her."
"But God," asked Adam, "why did you make her so stupid?"
And He replied, "So that she could love you."

A drum made from a section of log simply appears to have had its bark removed . My large drums are double-headed and cross-laced (as in the sketch ) with one long rawhide strip of lacing . Anyway , sorry I've no camera . If I thought a photo to be important I'd make you a drum and send it to you . So , then you could take a picture of it . Thanks for your interest . I can describe any aspect of making one of these drums that you may be curious about .

For one simple drum that I enjoy making a found flower pot is the shell - and should I have no hide at hand I'd pray for , look for and skin a road-kill . I've 20 years experience . My interest began with a visit from a magical dancing bird at a site where pioneer prairie settlers had been massacred by Indians . Seems they had made their little settlement on Sacred Ground , that is , so beautiful no one , no tribe , should ever claim it .

I can describe my drum-making tools . The chain saw I almost don't want to mention , but there it is to make the first cut and then forgotten . The rest are hand-tools :

an ordinary 3/4 inch flat chisel
a long chisel made from a 12 in. metal file and a carpenter's hammer handle (gifted by a blacksmith)
one wooden mallet - hickory , self-made
a horse-shoe'ers rasp
scissors
a hide scraper made from a small axe blade (from a Flathead Rez Montana drum-maker)
a knife or two
tannic acid made from acorns and alcohol
a trimming saw
a little Norwegian scoop chisel